Good policing policies and efforts to dispel rumors were the focuses of a safety forum at a Joliet city community safety meeting this week.
The event, hosted by the Police and Fire departments, was held at the Billie Limacher Bicentennial Park. It highlighted initiatives Joliet has undertaken to combat crime and keep the city safe.
Police Chief Bill Evans proposed the public safety open forum to create more dialogue with the community. The purpose of the open forum is to exchange accurate information about high profile cases and to address residents’ concerns
Chief Evans said his department is budgeted to have 286 officers, but only has 262 on staff. Due to retirements and resignations, he said the department has undertaken a human capital recruitment effort to hire more officers.
“We are doing well, but we do have challenging times ahead of us because of staffing,” he said.
One of the improvements the department has had is the purchased of 55 new squad cars.
Referencing the old police vehicles the officers used, Evans said, “Even the bad guys felt bad for us. We cannot help if we cannot get to you.”
In 2023, Evans said the Joliet Police Department responded to 89,000 calls. Of the 10 homicide cases, he said more than 80 percent have been closed. In Joliet, Evans said the pattern of crime activity is down. And aggravated battery decreased by 5 percent. Aggravated discharge of a firearm decreased by 53 percent. Overall shootings are down 37 percent; and robberies declined by 18 percent.
“The Joliet Police Department also houses the only stand-alone 911 center in Will County,” he said. “This means we only handle Joliet calls.”
Understanding that the community has questions regarding drowning deaths in the Des Plaines River, Evans urged that the community not to jump to conclusions.
On April 19, the body of Robert Long, 37, was pulled from the river eight days after he was last seen by his mother. Evans said rumors of people being killed and thrown into the river are simply not true. In March, the body of Deshawn J. Green, 37, of Joliet washed up at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Joliet Township. About 10 people have been pulled from the deep and dangerous river since 2020.
“These deaths are profoundly troubling,” said Evans. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to friends and families. We want to offer them a glimmer of hope by having closure.”
Evans said these deaths were not caused by foul play, but rather suicide.
“In our line of work, every investigation is built on factual evidence,” he said.
To prevent further tragedies, Evans said the city is considering posting signs along the river walks advising those considering suicide to call for help. A similar program has proven to be a success in Naperville, city officials said.
Additionally, Fire Chief Jeff Carey said his department responded to more than 23,000 incidents last year, of which 22 percent were fire based. The remainder were for emergency services like cardiac arrests.
“Over 70 percent of fire deaths in the United States occur in homes,” he said. To prevent that, Carey said every home should have a working smoke detector and people should consider closing their bedroom doors when they sleep because it buys firefighters time to reach people and rescue them from their burning homes.
Evans envisions this forum becoming an annual event, comparing it to a focused state of the city address on public safety.